Bottle-cover-placing machine.



T. G. LINDERME.

BOTLE COVER PLACING MACHINE. APPLlcATloN FILED JUNE 2`, 19m

1,252,460. l Patented fran. 8,1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l T. G. LINDERME.

BOTTLE COVER PLACING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 2, |916.

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BOTTLE-covEB-PLACING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led J une 2, 1916. Serial No. 101,226.

' To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, THEODORE G. LIN- DERME, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Detroit, in the county of Wayne and State of Michigan', havev invented certain new and usefulA Improvements in Bottle-Cover-Placing Machines, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to a bottle cover placing machine, and may be aptly termed a rotary machine in contradistinction to that type wherein covers are completely and solely manipulated in a vertical plane with the bottles on which the covers are to be placed. y

The primary object of my invention is to provide a bottle cover placing machine of great capacity, wherein rotary vacuum means is employed for obtaining and manipulating a collapsed cover to open and shape the cover during the movement of the rotary means fand convey the cover to la bottle or similar receptacle.

Another .object of my invention is to provide apbottle cover placing machine which p obviates the necessity of usingindependently actuated grippersv or fingers vand the mechanism incident to such devices, all of which must be operated in timed relation to the movement of a bottle and is necessarily comparativelyslow in operation, besidesbeing subjectk .to cover imperfections and false moves which may clog the machine or retard the cycleof manipulating a cover.

o A further object of my invention is to pro- V vide a .machine of the above .type wherein the parts are constructedy with a View of reducing the cost of manufacture and atthesame time retain the features by which sim plicity of construction, durability, ease of assembling,.safety of cover manipulation are secured. With such ends in View, my inven` tion resides in the novel construction to be hereinafter described and then claimed.

Reference will now be had to the drawings, .wherein- Figure 1' is a vertical sectional view of the bottle cover placing machine, partly in elevation and partly broken away; v

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view'of the machine taken on the line IIII of Fig. 1, 'and Fig. 3 is a similar view taken on the line III-III of Fig. 1.

In the drawings, 1 denotes a base and mounted therein is the lower end of a tubular upright or pedestal 2 having a solid'extension 3 at the upper end thereof. rIhe upper end of the base 1 has a holder 4 for a ball race 5-and on said ball race are anti-frictional balls 6 supporting the hub 7 of a horizontally disposed gear wheel 8. The gear wheel 8.has a hub extension 9, coupled as at 10, to the hub 11 of a rotaryhorizontally disposed head 12. The head 12-has a concentric recess 13 providing clearance for a cam 14, which has one hub portion thereof fixed tothe upright extension 3, as at 15, and another hub portion thereof extending into the hub 11. Y

The top of the rotary head 12 has a plurality of equally spaced and radially disposed grooves 16 and slidable in said grooves are'vacuum or suction members 17 having the inner ends `thereof provided with depending rollersl 18- extending into a cam lgroove 19 in the top of the` cam 14, asbest Patented Jan. 8,1918.;

lng in number to the nipple 23 and the ports l of said bushing are adapted to successively communicate with a segment slot 25- in the tubular upright 2, said slot establishing communication between the upright and practically four bushing ports, at one time.

e The lower end of the tubular upright 2 has a nipple 26 extending through the base 1 and connected by a conduit27 to a vacuum pump 28. This vacuum pump, or apparatus of a conventional form and has the operating shaft 29d thereof coupled, as at 30, to the armature shaft `31 of an electric motor 32 or othery source of power. Y.

The operating shaft 29 pump or apparatus 28 is also adapted for imparting a rotary movement to the head 12 and `this is accomplished in the following manner. The holder '4 of the base 1 lhas a bracket 33 andjournaled in said bracket -is a shaft 34 of a Worm 35 meshing with the horizontally disposed gearT wheel 8. The shaft 34 has .a fixed clutch/member 36 and adapted to vmesh therewith is an adjustable clutch member 37 slidable on the shaft 29,

of the vacuum l28, and the mechanism for shifting the clutch member 37 will be hereinafter referred to in connection with a bottle. conveyer.

The vacuum or suctlon members 17 are retained within the grooves 16 of the head 12 by a ring 38v secured to the head-.12 and to the arms of a spider 39, said spider being `connected as at to a bearing sleeve 41 pon the solid extension 3 of the tubular upright 2. The spider 39 bears upon the upper end of the hub portion of the calm 14, as clearly shown in Fig. 1. f

The rotary head 12 is provided .with equally spaced radially disposed stationary cover holding arms 42 and thesevarms have the confronting sides thereof, at the outer ends, provided with notches 43 which are substantially Vshaped in cross section.

Atone side of the upright or pedestal 2 there is another pedestal 44 supporting a magazine 45 for collapsed bottlecovers 46. These bottle covers are. preferably of that character made of a durable paper cut and formed to provide a bottle cover that is open at both ends and somewhat frustoconical shaped in elevation, the cover being \de` signed to fit over a bottle, rest upon the breast of a bottle, and serve as a shield for the bottle yparticularly to exclude light and serve as a packer. The' covers 46 are.

fed to one end of the magazine 45 by a follower 47 actuatedby weights 48 connected to the follower by cables 49 trained over revoluble sheaves 50. The magazine is positioned so that each suction member 17 may be projected into the open end of the magazine to obtain a cover by suction and remove the same to a position between the cover holding arms 42.

The upper end of the stationary upright extension 3 is provided with an overhanging arm 51 constituting a support for a fixed I bearing shaft 52, which has the lower end thereof provided with a horizontally disposed xed cam 53. Rotatable Aon the bearfing shaft 52 above the cam 53, is a circular gripper head 54 having the hub 55 thereof provided with a gear wheel 56. This gear wheel is driven by a train ofsmall gears 57 supported from the arm 51 and the train of gears is driven by a large horizontally daily' 'fdi'sposedfigsists,59

gripping arm'sl i60-l (The pins 64 slidable in the radial slots 59 of the 'head 54. The lower ends of the pins 64 have rollers 65 engaging the periphery of the cam 53, and the rollers 65 are held normally in engagement with said cam by the retractile force of the springs 62 tending to close the inner ends of the arms 60 which impinge against the upper rollers 63. W'ith the cam- 53'held stationary and the gripper head ro tated, it isapparent that the shape of the cam 53 determines the opening and closing of the grippers 61, and by reference to Fig. 2, it will be noted that the gripper head 54 is placed contiguous to the head 12 whereby the grippers 61 will be moved over the marginal edges of the head 12. The grippers 61 are adapted to close upon an opened cover held by the head 12Oand transfer the cover to a bottle or similar receptacle, which may be manually placed to receive the cover or 'may be automatically placed in position by a bottle conveyer, a.v conventional form of which will now be described.

Below the gripper head 54 is a trough 66 provided with legs or suitable supports 67 a. In the trough 66 is an endless conveyer, preferably in the form of a sprocket chain 67 having seat members or cups 68 adapted to receive bottles 69. One of the sprocket wheels 70 over which the chain 67 is trained may be driven,` as at 71, from the pump or apparatus shaft 29.

The sidewalls of the trough 67 are provided with buffer members 72 and 73, 'the latter being connected, as at 74, to an arm 75 pivoted to a bracket 76 on the side of the trough 66. The arm 75 may be connected to the bracket 76 bv a coiled ret-ractile springl 78 to a fulcrum lever 79 carried by a bracket 8O projecting from the vacuum pump or apparatus 28. The fulcrum lever 79 1s adapted for shifting the clutch member37 mto and 'out of engagement with the clutch member 36, similar to an ordinary clutch mechanism.

In the operation of the machine, a vacuumv pump or apparatus 28 and the bottle conveyer are continuously operated and the operation of the suction head 12, as well as the gripper head 54, kdepends entirely upon whether a bottle or receptacle is in posltlon or about to enter a positi on :t cover. Assumingl a bottlef 6911i mand-.73, filieinaeais;actuated @Ont-brown.

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the clutch member'37 and"permit3 of "thelQ worm ,35 impartinga ,1 rotaryz movemen tto the head 12. This head is rotated and as the cam 14 is held stationary, the suction mem- .bers are reciprocated within the head 12 tered the magazine 45 and when the suctionl head 2O of the member is about to engage a cover, the slot 25 of the upright 2 establishes communication between said upright and the suction lhead 20 whereby an atmospheric reduction will cause the bottle cover 46 to adhere to the head 2 0 and permit of the member 17, when retracted, removing the bottle cover from the magazine into the notches 43 of the cover holding arms 42. The notches 43 are shaped to receive the folded edges of the cover 46 and while the head 12 is carrying the cover toward the gripper head 54, the cover is exed in two directions to open the same. It will be remembered that the slot 25 establishes communication between the tubular upright 2 and more than one of the ports of the bushing 24, consequently an atmospheric reduction is maintained in the cover holding head 20 during practically -a quarter revolution of the head 12. As the cover is carried from the magazine toward. thegripper head 54, the suction member 17 is retracted to that extent as to concave the cover relative tothe periphery of theihead 12 and then convex the cover.y The convex movement of the cover places the outer Iwall thereof in an openV position, Vand then the concave movement of the cover places the'inner wall of the cover in an open position. By this time the cover has reached the position opposite l the gripper head 54 and as said head is rotated in timed relationto the head 12 and the opening and closing of the grippers 61 controlled by the cam 56, the grippers 61 are adapted to close in on the upper end of the cover and in gripping the cover tending to further open the same. This has been shown in Fig. 2 where the grippers 61 at the -opening wheel have gripped the upper end of the cover, squeezing the walls together, and thereby holding the lower walls of the cover bowed and open. With the upper end of the cover held between the grippers 61 and the head 54 rotating, the cover is removed from between the arms 42 and transferred to a position above the bottle 69. The grippers 61 are automatically opened allowing the cover to descend on to the bottle 69.

During this operation of removing one cover from the magazine and transferring it to 'a bottle, other covers are being manipulated, and as shown, it is during the quarter revolution of the rotaryhead 12 that a bottle cover is opened. It is therefore apparent that the capacity of the machine may be materially increased by duplicating the magazine 45 and the gripper head 54 in con-l nection with-that size of rotary head 12 shown, furthermore that this head may be made of such a diameter as to serve a. plurality of magazines and gripper heads.

' By referring to Fig. 2, it will be noted that the cam groove 19 has a contour which will shift the suction member 17, whereby a cover is first withdrawn from the magazine against the rounded lends of the cover hold,- ing arms 42. The cover is next drawn between the arms to cause the side edges of the Acover to spring into engagement with the 'notches 43. Next, the cover is convexed andthen concaved with the side edges of the cover held during both iexing actions. In gripping the upper end of the cover by the grippers 61, the side edges of the cover are practically removed from the notches 43 of the arms 42, as the cover tends to become more cylindrical and may be easily deposited upona bottle.

My invention is not necessarilylimited to the use of a bottle conveyer and the automatic control operation of the rotary head 12, although this automatic control of the head 12 will prevent covers from clogging the machine when a bottle is not in position. It is apparent however that should a cover miss a bottle, the conveyer will simply carry the same away. The bottles may be placed in lposition by hand, and while in the drawings there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be under- 1 stood that the structural 'elements are susceptible to such variations and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims. What I claim is 1. In va bottle cover manipulating machine, a magazine for collapsed covers,'a e

rotary head, and means carried by said head adapted to remove a cover from said magazine to open said cover during the rotation of said rotary head. v

2. In a bottle cover manipulating ma` chine,` a magazine for collapsed covers, a

rotary head, and suction means carried by 4. In a bottle -cover manipulating ma.

125 rotary and remiprocable suction means adaptchine, a magazine for collapsed covers, and' ed to remove a cover from the magazine and flex it in two directions to open the cover: 5. lA bottle cover manipulatlng machine embodying rotary v and A reciprocable suction means adapted to flex a collapsed cover inl 7. A cover manipulating machine comprising amagazine adapted for collapsed covers, a. rotary head, arms about said head adapted for holding covers, and reciprocable suction means about said head adapted for removing covers from said magazine to positions between said arms, and flexing said covers while held by said arms to open the covers.

8. A cover manipulating machine comprising a magazine adapted for collapsed covers, a rotary head, radial arms on said head adapted for holding covers by the edges thereof, and reciprocable suction means about said head adapted for removing covers from said magazine to positions between said arms and flexing said covers to concave and convex positions to separate the walls of the collapsed covers.

9. In a cover manipulating machine, a magazine for collapsed covers, a plurality of arms adapted to successively hold covers, and reciprocable suction means between said arms adapted to successively shift covers from said magazine to said holding arms and open said covers While held thereby.

10. In a cover manipulating machine, a magazine for collapsed covers, a plurality of arms adapted to successively hold covers', a plurality of suction members adapted to successively 'shift covers from said magazine to said holding arms and Hex the covers while held thereby to separate the Walls of the collapsed covers, and means adapted for gripping, removing and maintaining the covers open relative to said holding arms.

11. In a bottle cover machine, a ma azine for collapsed covers, a cover gripping evice,

and means for moving covers from said magazine to said device adapted to successively engage and flex a plurality of covers while being moved. from said magazine to said device. 5

12. In a bottle cover manipulating machine, a magazine for collapsed covers, a tubular upright, a source of suction in communication with said upright, a rotary head on. said upright, and suction members on said head adapted to successively communicate with said tubular upright, remove covers from said magazine, and flex the covers to open the same.

13. In a bottle cover manipulating machine, a tubular upright, means for simultaneously revolving and maintaining an atmospheric reduction in said upright, a head carried by said upright, a plurality of radially disposed suction members reciprocable on said head and adapted to communicate with said upright, and a stationary cam engaged by said suction members adapted to cause said members to reciprocate in timed relation to the rotation of said head.

14. In a bottle cover placing machine, a suction head adapted to manipulate a cover, a source of suction for said head, means controlling the operation of said suction head,

buffers between which a bottle is adapted to pass to actuate one of said buffers and receive a cover, and means actuated by one of said buffers to govern the suction head controlling means.

15. In a bottle cover placing machine, a magazine for collapsed covers, a reciprocable suction member adapted to remove a cover from said magazine and swing in a horizontal plane to deliver said cover at a point remote fromsaid magazine, and a rotary gripping device adapted to grip a cover heldby said member.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

THEODORE Gr. LINDERME.

Witnesses GENEVIEVE E. MCGRANN, KARL H. BUTLER. 

